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The Challenge of the Soul: A Guide for the Spiritual Warrior (Paperback)

Description

In times of upheaval, many of us seek guidance from a spiritual mentor, someone who has confronted challenges and become a stronger person as a result. Here Rabbi Niles Elliot Goldstein draws from his own hard-won insights and personal experiences as a congregational rabbi, martial artist, FBI chaplain, and limit-pusher and interweaves them with the teachings of sages, biblical figures, and thinkers of all stripes to help us get beyond our own perceived limitations and face life’s challenges with fearlessness and fortitude. Goldstein identifies eight essential qualities that he believes we must cultivate to live a life of self-empowerment and then uses a programmatic approach to explore these qualities and the ways we can develop them in ourselves.

Rabbi Goldstein is known for challenging himself physically, mentally, and spiritually. He counseled law enforcement officers at Ground Zero, has traveled to numerous remote and inhospitable places to learn and teach, and has sought out difficult experiences to rigorously test himself and the meaning of his faith.

About the Author

Niles Elliot Goldstein is the founding rabbi of The New Shul in Greenwich Village, New York City, a program officer/educator at the Jewish Life Network, and an associate of CLAL: the National Jewish Center for Learning and Leadership. He has written for Newsweek magazine, is the voice behind "Ask the Rabbi" for Microsoft, and is the National Jewish Chaplain for the Federal Law Enforcement Officers Association. He is the author or editor of three other books. Goldstein lives in Brooklyn, New York.

Praise For…

“Highly recommended. Goldstein harmoniously blends teachings from the Hebrew Bible, Hasidism, secular contemporary thinkers, and from his own training in the martial arts and his experience as a rabbi.”—Association of Jewish Libraries

“Goldstein's work offers a strong counterbalance to so much of the current teaching that seems to imply that thinking ‘good thoughts’ and ‘visualizing’ can guarantee a life of ease and plenty.”—Spirituality & Health

“In this compelling book, Goldstein provides a step-by-step program for contemporary searchers to become spiritual warriors.”—Spirituality & Practice

“A guy who can discuss Jewish mysticism, boxing, and the Central Asian nations he has visited can make some distinctive and unique connections others wouldn’t see.”—PublishersWeekly.com

“Rabbi Goldstein shows us, through examples from his own spiritual journey, how to harmonize the fine-tuned disciplines of the martial arts with a profound and transformative Judaism grounded in its mystical teachings. Any person who seeks to transform and empower him/herself in response to the call of their soul will find Rabbi Goldstein an insightful guide and a compassionate companion.”—Rabbi Zalman Schachter-Shalomi, author of Credo of a Modern Kabbalist

"Niles Goldstein makes faith an adventure—which is the only kind of trip worth taking."—Douglas Rushkoff, author of Nothing Sacred and Life Inc.

“Goldstein's writing style, down-to-earth and jovially conversational, is a pleasure to read."—myjewishlearning.com